This is a sneak peek of Around the Dial, the zone-tastic back-page column that appears every week in Score Atlanta. Be sure to stop by your metro-area Kroger, QuikTrip or Blockbuster to pick up a copy!
The Atlanta Falcons were part of the FOX national broadcast last week as the Falcons flew west to face the Dallas Cowboys. Thom Brennaman and Troy Aikman called the game, but it was clear that one of the major story angles the network was going after was Keith Brooking’s first game against his former club. Brooking suited up for Atlanta for eleven seasons before leaving the team to sign with Dallas before the season. In the week leading up to the game, Brooking made appearances on both of Atlanta’s sports radio stations and he spoke with FOX as well. During most of the interviews he spoke kindly of the city of Atlanta and had mostly positive words to say about his time in Atlanta at both Georgia Tech and with the Falcons. During the game however, Brooking looked happier over the fact that his former team was losing more so than his new team was doing well. The former Falcon linebacker finished with just two tackles and was on the sidelines for much of the second half; however he was seen several times mocking the Dirty Bird dance that several Falcons did many seasons ago. He sarcastically would flap his arms or “wings,” after teammates made plays.
Following the game, Brooking told the media that, “[he] ain’t apologizing for nothing.” He noted that the Cowboys stepped on them and kicked them to the ground and that he guessed that while this is a young man’s game, “I guess an old man can still play.” I watched the entire game and I cannot recall a single impact play he made, and to be honest, I had to check cbssports.com to see that he had those two tackles. Throughout the fourth quarter though, he was seen giddily jumping on the sidelines while the rest of the Cowboys made plays. I know you are an emotional player, but the mock wing flapping and your comments to the media after the game might just be costing you a chance at some sort of long-term partnership with the Falcons. Maybe your former teammates understand the situation, but I think you might have a hard time getting some of them to appear at your next fundraiser after you openly mocked them like that. The AJC reported that Brooking was apologizing to Falcons personnel after the game, but that is like when the player flips the bird to the home fans then says, “Oh, that isn’t in my character. That isn’t who I am.” We saw how you truly feel in the heat of battle. Words after the fact are one thing. Your actions during the game spoke volumes.
Speaking of speaking volumes, after Florida’s 29-19 win over Mississippi State, Gator QB Tim Tebow’s volume was set to mute. Tebow turned down interview requests after the game; instead Florida Coach Urban Meyer spoke to the media. Tebow threw two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns by the Mississippi State Bulldogs. Meyer took the blame for his quarterback, saying he put Tebow in the wrong situations, but I disagree. Meyer wasn’t the one that threw the picks. Tebow, as a senior, should have known to throw it away or pull it down and try to run for the touchdown himself. Tebow is made available to the media after every Gator win and spoke to the press last season after the Ole Miss lose, giving the world the now-famous speech. Just because he played a bad game, Tebow should not have been taken away from the media by Meyer. If Tebow made that decision on his own, he needs to realize that he will need to speak to the media after a bad game in the NFL. Tebow needed to face the music over a bad performance as QBs do all over the conference and the NCAA. And don’t think NFL player personnel guys weren’t taking note that Tebow ducked the media. His stock might have taken a hit there.
Finally, ESPN has fired Steve Phillips just days after the former MLB color analyst admitted having an affair with a production assistant at the sports network. Phillips had been with the network for several seasons after he was fired from his position as GM of the New York Mets. Phillips was added to the Sunday Night Game of the Week team with Jon Miller and Joe Morgan before the season. According to a Phillips spokesman, Phillips will enter a treatment facility.
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